Bronchial selective ventilation in a wide tracheocutaneous fistula

We present the treatment and management of a wide tracheocutaneous fistula after tracheotomy correlated with excessive cuff pressure in a 36-year-old woman with cerebral palsy since infancy in which persistent type II respiratory failure required continuous ventilatory support. We discuss the surgical treatment adopted for the management of this particularly wide lesion. At the end of surgery, mechanical ventilation through a tracheal cannula was hindered by the reduced length of the residual trachea below the tracheotomy. The need to guarantee mechanical ventilation to the patient led to the implementation of a cuff securing system in the two main bronchi. We describe the approach that may be attempted under extreme conditions, when traditional ventilation methods cannot be applied for anatomical reasons. © 2012.